Dei Fabula
by God of LoL
Summary: What... is it that you desire? Is it wealth? Power perhaps? Maybe revenge? Or mayhaps...Something that surpasses all others? Haste not to answer, young one. Instead, why don't you sit down and listen to a story? The story of the man who could claim all, yet desired nothing. The story of the 25th Baam. Or should I say... Jyu Viole Grace? The story of a GOD.
1. The Strangest Tide

_ 20 minute survival. Every 2 minutes, a single Regular is to be sent in, for a total of 10. Once 20 minutes have passed, the contestants left standing are the winners. Any method is allowed to eliminate the rest of the contestants on the field and any Regulars deemed unable to continue are disqualified and removed. The order of entry is chosen randomly and there are no handicaps given based on the order of entry._

Ja Wangnan re-read the rules once more, making sure he got everything from the small metal plate that was screwed into the white wall. He patted his pocket, making sure that he got the emergency smoke bombs and Swiss Knife with him. They both seemed to be in place. _Good, _he thought._ This time, I will definitely pass! If I fail here, it's all over... You can do it..._ _Because you are the man that will become King!_

Wangnan reflexively rubbed the bright red ring on his hand, thoughts of grandeur and glory clouding his mind for a moment. The sudden sound of the bell and the announcer's notice of his name and number were enough to drag him back into reality. Determined, he walked inside the oval white room, the three figures in it already taking away his confidence of a certain victory.

"Hm?" grumbled the tallest of the three, a tanned white haired man that held a red spear as big as he was. With a quick inspection on the new visitor, a big white grin took over his square face, his heavy footsteps background musictohis boast. "Fresh meat? And here we were worried about not eating enough breakfast." The laughter of the other two was his chorus. "Let's eat, yes boys?"

Wangnan swallowed a knot that had formed in his throat during the past few seconds. The black tie he had ironed this morning was suffocating him now, as he saw the red spear being raised to attack. The burns on his body would make it hard for him to run for too long if he decided to go down that road. Thus he had to play smart.

He remembered the horror movie he'd seen last night, the dramatization of Phantaminum's attack on the King's palace. He remembered more precisely the scene when the Riddle had raised his -in this movie- scythe, while letting a high-pitched harsh laugh echo in the bloody room, the laughing alone more than enough to frighten everyone to madness.

Would it work? Perhaps not. But it was worth a try.

He smiled as twistingly as he could, as he muttered "Finally." The spear bearer hesitated a bit, thinking his ears were tricking him. Wangnan repeated himself. "Finally..." And then over and over again, his voice becoming more crazy, more vicious, more...crazy. "Finally finally finally FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY **_FINALLY_!** A GUY WITH SOME BALLS! DO YOU KNOW HOW FUCKING _HARD_ IT IS TO FIND SOMEBODY BALLSY ENOUGH TO COME AGAINST ME?!" The spear bearer let the spear slip in his hand. He hated nutcases. Nutcases never went for quick kills, they always wanted to enjoy the kill and watch their victims suffer. He had seen it enough times already to know that he should be afraid. Every sane Regular learned to. Wangnan**,** however, didn't stop there. He had to finish this. "WILL YOU ENTERTAIN ME?! WILL YOU ENTERTAIN ME TILL YOU DIE?! WILL YA WILL YA WILL YA?!" His throat was becoming sorefrom the screaming. The Regular before him was shaking too much to notice it though, but Wangnan could still feel his will to put up a fight. He materialized two inventories full of his trademark bombs. There were quite a fewpeople who were willing to play kamikazi and were stupid enough to challenge monsters.

"GIVE ME A SHOW!" screamed Wangnan again." GIVE ME A SHOW TO _DIE FOR_!"

The tanned man's shaking stopped for a moment. _Crap_, thought Wangnan._ Crap crap crap, I overdid it, I overdid it BIG time. I _knew_ I shouldn't have quoted the movie! Now my 'guise is blown! _ He closed his eyes and waited for punishment. He had read his horoscope. Economic troubles with a high chance of sudden death. _Well, that's good. I hate it when it's drawn-out too much._

"PLEASE DON'T KILL US!"

On the other hand, he might have been on the wrong page. _...Jackpot?_

* * *

_Dei Fabula- Chapter 1- The Strangest Tide_

* * *

_One and a half minutes...Good, I guess?_ Turning off the pocket's clock application -a Swiss Knife device of sorts, with its primary function being that of a omni-linquistic translator-, Wangnan got up from his spot and dusted his brown pants off. He blew some of his orange bangs out of his eyes, enduring with the annoyance of non-gel-dressed hair for one more day.

He stretched his legs a bit, strategies of how to subdue the next opponent filling his mind already. It was four people against one. No Regular on the 20th Floor could take on that many opponents, with the sole exception of Princesses. And the last one was ten floors above, according to the endless stack of magazines that featured his beloved Princess Androssi Zahard on them. But, one could never know what kind of monsters could go past the radar, **so** a team attack was most appropriate.

"Oi." he called out his newly aquired henchmen. The cloaked Wave Controller and the Fisherman stood immediately at attention, the Spear Bearer already in it.

"Y-YES!" they said in unison. He could really get used to the idea of having minions under his feet.  
"The next guy that comes in...Go for a pincer." He commanded.

They were obviously questioning his plan, albeit how logical it was. "P-Pincer?" started the Wave Controller. His state of mild panic was clearly not letting him think properly, thus, Wangnan explained to him. "Pincer. We can't have too many Regulars on the test or else it will get uncomfortably hard. And I'm _not_ in the mood to kill another room of boring Regulars again."

"A-A-As expected from Master Wangnan!"

_Ding!_

The four of them took battle positions, as the metal doors were sliding open. Even when they had fully opened themselves, the four could still not get a full view of the man. He had to duck to get past the opening, becoming scarier and scarier in the eyes of the four unfortunate contestants.

To Wangnan, there was only one available option.

"Wait." he told the other three. None of them lowered their weapons, but they were on standby.

Wangnan walked forward. He stood before the towering figure, his furry cloak and oversized red gauntlets making him look even bigger than he actually was. He had a wing made out of pure Shinsoo sticking out of his back, an accessory that looked awkward on the giant.

Silently gulping a knot on his throat, Wangnan said as cockily as he could master, "How about a deal?"

Horyang. Kang Horyang. That was the name of the man, as Wangnan unfortunately found out when the _Teddy_ _Bear_ -as he came to call him- patted his shoulder to apparently nail him in the ground. Even with the three idiots praising Wangnan for his wits and evilness, he could tell that the big guy had already figured everything out. Every now and then he would glance at the giant's way; Wangnan could see a small smirk battling its way on his face only to subdue itself in the end. To the other three, Horyang's face was outright stoic, even morbid.

But Wangnan's few years with his mother and her friend taught him otherwise.

He clenched his fist as tightly as he could, trying not to give away his anxiety and blow his cover. This was one of the situations where "the more the merrier" obviously did not apply.

The familiar 'ding' made him jump a bit, a scare he managed to cover by getting up. Along with him, so did the three Stooges.

"Same plan, Master Wangnan?" said the Fisherman.

"Unless they are useful." said Wangnan, as they were preparing themselves for a Pincer. Horyang, on the other hand, was trying not to chuckle at the man's desperate attempts to make himself look vicious and evil. "Shut up, I'm desperate." he mouthed to him. Shaking his head, Horyang sat a bit more comfortably and watched the four prepare to attack the monster that would come out of the door next. And as the doors opened...

"Oh. H-Hi!"

...A little girl came out. A girl in a school uniform, no less.

_...It's decided. The administrators want me dead._

The three were ready to attack the little girl, but Wangnan's raised hand stopped them. They could get an easy kill out of this one, making their lives a little bit easier in this hellhole. Wangnan grinned a bit nervously at the three, before kneeling before the girl.

"Hello."

* * *

_Ja Z. Wangnan, what in the Savior King's name is going through your freaking mind?_ He clutched his knees in frustration, letting his nails to pierce his skin. The little blood that trailed from it went mostly unnoticed. Nobody talked. Any of her attempts to talk with Wangnan were shot down by Wangnan's eyes, full of anger (at himself). In the silent room, the only noises were Miseng's -the little girl's- cellphone and Horyang's wing wavering every now and then. The Spear Bearer's gritting teeth were barely noticeable and so was his pacing. He was impatient, he wanted to stab something and soon. And Master Wangnan's eagerness to recruit rather than kill off every new contestant that walked through the door wasn't something he fathomed either. Wasn't he the one that didn't want the difficulty to get higher?

"Master Wangnan!" he said suddenly. "I do not understand!"

Wangnan glared at his way, the spearman's new found courage wavering a bit. "Master Wangnan..." he hesitated. "Why do we let this little girl be in the team with us? Look at her! She's begging to be disqualified! So why!"

"That's the point, you idiot!" He shouted. He got up and grabbed his white head and dragged him closer. He materialized his inventory of bombs and took out one of the Shinsoo Rapid Decompression (SRD) ones. "Pack her little back-pack with one of these babies and she will scatter a whole room of Regulars all over the place." he hissed. "All we have to do is feed her like a pig for slaughter. Understand? Hm?"

Nodding his head, the Spear Bearer moved as far away from him as he could. Who knows, maybe he would change his mind about it and use him instead. He could not risk it.

The Wave Controller, on the other hand, didn't seem that convinced from the plan. Sure, it was a brilliant plan for a psychopath that wanted it to rain blood, but it was a tiny bit too...organized.

He didn't seem that eager to get up when the familiar signal of the new Regular's arrival echoed in the room. He knew that _Master_ _Wangnan_ was going to somehow convince them that the new arrival was going to be essential to a master plan he would have.

The doors slid open. A woman with glasses came in, wearing normal clothes this time. She didn't look cute, she wasn't outstandingly beautiful, hell, she didn't even look useful. But he knew that he wouldn't attack her for a stupid reason.  
"Hey, Goseng!"  
"Miseng! Are you taking this test too?"  
_No, she's here for camping._ Wangnan's raised hand halted the other two's fire. The new girl, Goseng, as the little one called her, sat between her and Horyang, the latter blushing madly at her sudden presence. They started chatting casually, each word only amplifying the Wave Controller's rage.

And thus, he had enough.

"THAT'S IT!" he shouted. "THAT'S FUCKING IT!"

Everybody in the room was right now staring at him, but he didn't give a damn. He started pacing up and down, his distress now visible to all of them. "THIS!" he started. "IS A FUCKING TEST! THIS IS A FUCKING TEST OF THE 20TH FLOOR, FOR FUCK'S SAKE AND YOU FUCKHEADS ARE GATHERING AS IF IT IS A FUCKING DINNER PARTY!"

Wangnan clenched his teeth and put his hands in his pockets. The Wave Controller's face, or at least the visible part of it, was red with rage. "AREN'T WE ALL COMPETITORS?! AREN'T WE SUPPOSED TO SLAUGHTER ONE ANOTHER SO WE CAN GET PAST THIS FUCKING TEST?! SO WHY THE FUCK ARE WE GATHERING A FUCKING TEAM OF FUCKING TREE FRIENDS?! WE WERE SUPPOSED TO TAKE DOWN THE OTHERS VIA TEAMWORK, NOT THIS SHIT!" said he, staring at the rest as they stood uneasily before him. "AREN'T WE?!"

Nobody seemed to be brave enough to tell him that that was indeed why they were all there.

"Um..." muttered Miseng. "The test only requires us to survive for 20 minutes...I'm sure that we can all-"

"Shut the FUCK up, little bitch!" He could no longer be reasoned with. He was out of his mind. "Shut the FUCK up! You see, this is the problem with these tests! There's always a little slut like you, getting lucky and carried up by friends she found, but when they all realize how fucking useless you really are, BOOM! HEADSHOT! They leave you on the 20th Floor and now we honest Regulars have to put up with you! All because of that FUCKING rotten mind of yours!"

Wangnan looked at Miseng's way. Her lips began to quiver violently. He could tell that she fought, for a short moment, to be strong, but eventually gave in. The crystal steam that flowed from her eyes was a sight he didn't like to watch, as the little girl crawled into a small ball and started crying out apologies. "I-I'm sorry..." she stuttered. "I'm sorry I'm weak...I'm sorry...I'm sorry..." Her cry quickly started to distort and muffle her apologies, making her all the more pitiable in his eyes. Goseng tried to calm her down.

"Who do you think you are?" she said angrily. "Shhh, don't cry, nobody blames you..."  
The Wave Controller made his way to the two, a small room of Shinsoo ready to blast them away. "You shut up! AND STOP CRYING!" he shouted, but to no avail. "STOP FUCKING CRY-"  
_Boom._

Everything happened too fast. They never noticed when Horyang's winged hand grew in size to the point of it being the same size as he, they didn't notice when his gargantuan fist met the Wave Controller's body, they didn't even notice when the Wave Controller's spine broke on the impact of the concrete wall. As Horyang's fist shrunk back to its original size, the unconscious man was covered in a blue fire, before he disappeared from the Regulars' sight.

The Fisherman and Spear Bearer could only stare at the stoic man, now patting Miseng's back. "He was annoying." he explained.

Miseng however kept crying, her red cheeks covered in her many shedded tears. "I'm sorry...I'm sorry for being useless...Please don't throw me away..." she begged before wailing again in despair.

_Don't throw me away..._ repeated Wangnan inside himself. He closed his eyes for a second, in his attempt to not join the girl in her grief. For a second, he was no longer in the oval room with the small crater on his left. He was not with the two shaking Regulars, the crying girl and the woman that comforted her, the enormous man. For a second, he was but a boy, holding a woman's hand as he cried too. The woman was trying to calm him down too.

_"Nobody will throw you away..."_ whispered the woman to the boy. _"And neither will you, my little King." _  
"Nobody will throw you away." whispered Wangnan.

_Ding_.

The next contenstant's arrival dragged Wangnan back to the oval room with the other contestants. He looked behind him, only to see a pale man with short silver hair. He was tall, biologically over thirty, if he was correct. But from his leather jacket with the furry hood to his army boots, to the small 'innocent' smile on his lips, everything spelled trouble from the new man.

"Quite a few have gathered here, yes?"

He reached the small group in hops, his right hand hanging out for a handshake. Wangnan accepted the hand, and to his surprise, it was a gentle grip. The man grabbed him with his other hand too. "Relax, don't be so stiff." He shook it and dragged Wangnan towards himself, his arm already around Wangnan's shoulders. "All we have to do is survive for, what, 20 minutes? There's no need to waste our strength over nothing. Don't you think so?"

Wangnan nodded. "Ah, I agree, I agree." He was positively surprised by the man's pacifism. _Never judge a book from its cover, they say...I guess they are right. _Something about the stranger though was putting Wangnan off a bit. He didn't know if it was the obvious smell of alcohol or his (overly) friendly stance. Wangnan couldn't quite put his finger on what though.  
"But..." _There we go. You see, this is why you shouldn't trust people with shaved heads. There's always a 'but' with these people. _"Isn't this a tiny bit too many? We are going to be opponents anyway, so bringing this many along doesn't seem like a good idea, yes?"

Wangnan couldn't help but agree a bit with him. He shook his head a couple of times. "That's true, but-"

"So!" The silver haired man cut him off. "How about a little vote? It's okay, we aren't going to off somebody. If you declare that you forfeit the match, you are immediately transported out of the testing grounds. So, how about it? The three...Let's make it four people with the most votes get to hit it. Reasonable, yes?"

The two former henchmen muttered in agreement. They had already forgotten their allegiance with Master Wangnan. The idea that they could get rid of somebody without having to move a muscle wasn't that bad either.

The rest of the group, didn't seem that eager for the vote to begin. They all knew who the first obvious choice was going to be.

"Well." started the man. He looked at the candidates for a moment, before his eyes laid on the kid for a second. "I shall vote for...the kid."

Right as they all predicted. Wangnan stood a bit restlessly before he made his decision. He pointed at his choice. "Silver shit-head. One vote." he said. "If I'm going to drop anyone, I should drop the strong looking one first. What would you gain by dropping a kid anyway? Don't go around inciting problems and then back off, moron."

The predating yellow eyes of the man turned at him for a moment before he chuckled at defeat. He raised his hands, giving himself away to the authority of the vote. "Whatever. As you wish." he said mockingly. He was, admittedly, enjoying this. He looked over at the Spear Bearer and Fisherman, both standing at attention. "Silver shit-head!" they said in martial unison. "Two votes!" His scarred eyebrow twitched a bit. _Seriously?_

Seeing the girls were not that eager to participate in the vote, the man turned towards Horyang. "So...What do _you_ vote, dear Teddy Bear of ours?"

Horyang got up, making everyone remember their smallness before him. The silver-haired man, however, didn't waver before his stature. On the contrary, he whistled in amusement.

"One vote...for each of you." declared Teddy.

Wangnan's head got a little numb from the sudden declaration. _He could do that?_

The silver haired man's laughter filled the room, but was cut short from the all-familiar ding. From the new door, a blond man walked out, the sight before him unpleasant beyond belief.

"Da hell is goin' on here? The number of Regulars in this room is too damn high!" he shouted to himself.

Most stared at him awkwardly. "Well..." The silver-haired man though? "This is getting out of hand."

He summoned his weapon, a pointy parasol that could with no doubt pierce steel and pointed it at the Fisherman. The tip shined blue, before a Shinsoo beam shot the man and sent him flying across the room. Akraptor leaped away from the group and stood straight, one hand in his pocket and the other pointing the umbrella towards Horyang, firing yet another beam. Horyang, however, simply ignored the beam that struck him.

Having essentially declared war against them, Horyang transformed his wing icon into that of a red fist, his right arm corresponding to the transformation and changing size accordingly. He grabbed the fleeing Spear bearer and hurled him towards the man, who ducked. His arm shrunk again and the icon on his back changed into a winged boot. With a sonic boom, he covered the distance between them, before his arm grew in size again and crushed his escape route as a warning. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, sorry." he apologized sarcastically. "I was aiming for the other guy, but my hand slipped. It was an accident."

Horyang was not amused however. He swung his buried hand towards the parasol wielder, the debris becoming an excellent weapon to hit the tall man. With a few leaps, though, he had escaped the avalanche of rocks, but was almost hit by the Spear Bearer's projectile spear. Obviously annoyed, he pointed his trusty parasol his way, the beam of shinsoo burying him in the wall. His trouble was not finished, however, as the Fisherman and newest Regular had reached him and were trying to pierce him, unsuccessfully, with their needles.

Wangnan could only stare at the scene that unfolded before him, the quick succession of events leaving him gagging like a fool. _What the hell is this, a dog fight? No...No, this is good._ he concluded. _This is very good. This is in my favour. If they all eliminate one another I will be thankful to them._

Once again, Horyang grabbed the Spear Bearer and hurled him towards the dueling trio, much to the cannon fodder's discomfort. "DON'T USE A MOTHERFUCKER TO BEAT A MOTHERFUCKER, MOTHERFUCKER!" yelled the giant's victim just before colliding with the two needle users. Changing his wing into a boot again, Horyang reached and grabbed the moving Spear Bearer's leg, before slamming him on the ground like a rag doll. He would **h**ave slammed him again, weren't it for the Spear Bearer trying to stab him in the heart. With a swift change from a wing to a shield though, the spear broke on contract with Teddy's coat, not even tearing a hole in it.

_Bing_.

The silver haired man shot yet another beam at Horyang. "Sorry, my hand slipped." he said again. Fed up with him, Horyang let his arm grow and grabbed the lying Spear Bearer like a ball. The shirtless man already knew what was coming and closed his eyes, waiting for pain.

"Sorry, my hand slipped too!" said Horyang as he hurled the Spear Bearer at the parasol wielder. The Spear Bearer bounced too soon to impact with him, the supposed target laughing harshly at the man.

Goseng dragged Miseng closer to herself, praying that the fight of the five men wouldn't reach them in their non-existent shelter. Wangnan, on the other hand, was smiling more every second. _Yes, yes, pulverize one another!_

_Ding._

_What the- Oh yeah, there was supposed to be one more!_

* * *

The fighting stopped almost as soon as the new person walked inside the room, the only sounds in the room being the newcomer's footsteps...and the occasional punch the Fisherman would receive from the last guy that had come. Even from this distance, Wangnan could tell that he was shorter than him, if only by a few centimeters. He looked frail, breakable. However, his black robes however gave off an air of superiority and danger, or at least the illusion of it. Like Wangnan, he too wore brown pants and black leather shoes.

He could not see his face, a helmet of black glass supported by a metallic base covering it**_,_** with but two orbs of golden light being where the eyes were supposed to.

The mask however was not what drew Wangnan's attention. It was his robes, or at least the insignia that was on them. _This looks awfully familiar..._

Wangnan, however, did not get enough time to inspect the mark any further, his attention being drawn to the masked man's voice surprisingly light voice. Even female.

"Is this is the 16th Testing area? I got a little bit lost, you see..." said the man.

"Oh, screw this..." If Wangnan didn't know any better, he would say that the parasol fighter was fed up with this entire gig. He pointed his unorthodox weapon at the man and shouted in frustration. "For the next five seconds, everybody, please, on that guy."

"Deal." they all said in unison and ran towards the masked man. It was five against one, one looking as if he could break like a twig in the hand of Horyang. It was total overkill. But something about the new man had Wangnan feel uneasy. _Where have I seen that insignia before..._ he asked himself again. _Three blood red circles over white and red eyes... Where..._

The revelation struck him like lightning.

The five men had reached the new Regular, all ready to strike and finish him off. The silver haired man and Teddy, the main man of the show so far, had a small head start in comparison with the other three. The closer they got to their prey, though, the room was becoming more and more...quiet. It was a silence Wangnan was familiar with. It was the silence that was followed by an explosion's shockwave, the earth-shaking bang reaching your ears a few seconds too late.

Right before Horyang's gigantic fist and the parasol-man's parasol met with the man, the room had absolute silence. In Wangnan's eyes, the world was moving in slow motion, before finally stopping. Then he heard the man's voice again, like a distant echo.

"I suppose it is."

Wangnan closed his ears on instinct and took cover, an act both Miseng and Goseng copied. The ground shook below their knees and their shut ears could still catch a deafening "boom" of an explosion. Although there was no fire or the familiar flash of light, a shockwave hit the five assailantsand launched them into the walls. The center of the attack was no other than the new man, debris and dust now cloaking him in thriumph.

Wangnan looked at the five men. The three had already passed out and were teleported out of the test area, leaving only Horyang and the parasol man. The umbrella had cut their impact just enough for them to avoid disqualification.

Wangnan looked at the threat again. He had to act fast. He matterialized his inventory and grabbed the strongest SRD bomb in his possession and hammered it his way. The explosion's burst didn't even make him flinch though, but Wangnan prepared another bomb and hurled that too his way, the results being the same.

The man shook his head and started to slowly walk his way. He started singing a song, the explosion's sonic booms not diminishing his performance or progress a bit.

"..._Long ago, when your father like you set out to travel the world._.." Twenty steps away. "_._.. _he died helplessly on a beach that was ten Li wide..._" Fifteen steps away, the bomb assault does nothing to stop him. "_...I can't go, I can't go..._" Ten steps. And all Wangnan could think was _Not working! Not working! _"_...If you kill me and bury me here, in this place, you may leave for the world. But I can't go until I exact my revenge._" He was techincally before him. Wangnan had run out of his SRD bombs, leaving him with only his trick bombs and his gunpowder one. _FINE, WHATEVER'S FINE!_ _"It's too dangerous to go... So do not leave." _Desperate, Wangnan hurled his last bomb at the predator. The explosion, unlike the rest of his bombs, was dirty. The debris greater than before and the smoke was burning his eyes. The man, however, was silent. _...Did...Did it work?_

A hand reached out of the smoke and grabbed his shoulder gently. Wangnan, terrified, witnessed that the only thing that was damaged was his clothes. _Only his clothes!_ He took a step back, the wall stopping him from running away. This was his end.

"Sorry..." said the man, with a grief Wangnan didn't expect to hear. "And goodbye."

_I guess it was right...Economic troubles with a high chance of sudden death. At least I won't become a skeleton at that creep's hands._

He closed his eyes and waited his end. Yet, in his final moments, all he could do was apologize to the one person he believed he failed the most.

_Sorry...You'll see me unsuccessful..._

**_BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!_**

Wangnan was certain that, if anything, the afterlife was not supposed to sound like his trip to the dentist. He opened his golden eyes. He didn't see neither the white cloudy plains of heaven, nor the flaming desserts of hell. Nor the angels neither the devils. He was still inside the destroyed oval room, with the remaining contestants, all paying attention to the announcer.

**"20 MINUTES HAVE PASSED! THE FIRST ROUND OF THE TEST IS OVER! THOSE REMAINING ON THE STAGE, PLEASE COME UP BY RIDING THE LIFT!"**

His captor looked at him for a moment before letting him go. "What do you know, it's your lucky day!" he said cheerfully. He skipped to the elevator, hopping over the rocks and debris, before finally halting inside the metal chamber. The rest of the Regulars, however, did not move an inch.

And the elevator didn't look like it would move any time soon either.

"Well? Will you send him up already? We don't want to ride with this monster."

The announcer did not share the survivalistic views of the Regulars. With an instructing voice, he said through the speakers.

**"ACCORDING TO PROTOCOL, ALL REMAINING PARTICIPANTS ARE REQUIRED TO ENTER THE ELEVATOR, WANTING TO CONTINUE THE TEST OR NOT."**

"Can't you do two rides or something? Look man, it's not like-"  
**"JUST GET IN THE EFFING ELEVATOR!"**

"..."

They all, one by one, entered the lift reluctantly with the masked person. At least, everyone but Miseng. Unlike them, she entered the small metal box eagerly, dragging Goseng with as much liveliness.

The last to enter the elevator was Wangnan, who was still hesitating. Rolling his eyes though, he gave in the announcer's commands and he too was inside the elevator with the other five.

"Doooh...You _do_ love me." said the masked man mockingly.

"Shut up and leave me be."

And with that, the doors closed, their lift moving them to their next destination and thus, their next test.


	2. Monsters amongst us- Part 1

Akraptor had felt awkward in many moments of his life in the Outer Tower. His first date, his marriage, the many times his pregnant wife demanded beef with chocolate and coconuts, when his little girl's first words were "bollocks" and many, many other times. In his three years in the Inner Tower though, he had not felt this awkwardness before.

But what else could one feel, when the monster that was just stomping the ground with your face was humming the Bohemian Rhapsody in the otherwise silent elevator?

"My wife..." he muttered to himself "Will have one hell of a time when she hears this one..."

* * *

Dei Fabula- Chapter 2- Monsters amongst us- Part 1

* * *

The lift stopped with a violent clank and with it, so did his humming. He waited for everybody else to walk out of the lift, the echo of their steps on the wooden floor reaching out in the silent room. First came out the girl with the woman, the former bombarding the latter with a rain of words for every single thing, of great or no importance. The orange haired man followed suit, walking hastily behind them as he breathed in and praising his "freedom". The silverhaired man and...Teddy -The nickname somehow fitted the oversized man, even though their only interaction was him nailing the giant in a wall- walked out of the elevator last and seemingly in a normal pace, but with relief obvious in their faces.

Baam couldn't read minds. He could tell though what those two were thinking of him quite well. It didn't take a Shinsoo genius to know.

_Pfff._ he laughed at himself. _Baam._

People seldom called him 25th Baam nowadays. Mostly because his friends thought him dead and the people that knew he was alive had branded him with a new name, which had the sole purpose of instilling fear and terror in the minds of those who opposed him.

His name was now Jyu Viole Grace.

He didn't like the name one bit. But there was little he could do about it. The people that made him take this name were rather persuasive and he couldn't really deny the deal they made with him.

Sighing, Viole waltzed out of the metal chamber and towards the platform opposite of him, his eyes scanning the red curtains hiding the stage, and apparently, his next test. A white sheet was messily covering a sign on top of the curtains, leaving out only one word: _Strongest._

If he didn't know any better, he would say that a certain someone he knew felt a little playful with him today. He didn't sit around to think about it for long. If the little hint the sign told him anything, this was going to be a rather simple test. He instead just sat against the stage and stretched his back a bit to relax. They would have to wait a while for the rest of the contestants -if there were any-, so what's better than a few moments of relaxation?

Something was a bit off though. He stretched his back again, but it was as if something stopped him from moving properly. He felt as if there was a piece of metal in his stomach that stuck out of his back. He started searching his stomach with his hand. Clearly, this was just a nasty crumb, so why couldn't he-

"..."

Last time he checked, _this_ was not supposed to be there. His surprise of the so far unnoticed intruder was covered from the sudden pain that clouded his mind. He removed the little piece of metal and quickly pressed against the wound, the sudden river of blood making him press even harder in his panic.

He kept pressing against it, albeit the sudden loss of blood made him feel a little lighter in his head. The room seemed a little bit darker too and the little girl's constant talking a bit muffled The colors started to mix ever so little and the sounds became far-away echo in the back of his head. His mind was just as cloudy, for some reason making combinations of a redheaded woman, chocolate and cream, the results of which were rather...Questionable. An all-familiar crawling under his skin made him snap back into reality. He checked the wound. It was slowly closing, small red bones made of Shinsoo stitched it back together and sedated the pain at the same time, making itan annoying and persistent numb. He took a peak with a little hesitation, the small bones digging his skin before they finally disappeared. They didn't even leave a scar behind. Just chills in his spine and an urge to puke his breakfast out. He could hear a giggle in the back of his head, but he was sure it was just the girl from far away telling a story to her older friend.

He took a glimpse around. His little medical wonder was left unnoticed by the rest of the Regulars in the room. Thankfully, at least. It would be really creepy if they managed to see it from the distance they were sitting anyway, nobody had so good eyes. The rather long and great distance...

Viole heaved a morbid sigh. After six years of receiving such treatment, he couldn't help but get used to it. Briefly searching his pockets, he took out a small trinket and started playing with it. One could say it looked like a ring, or at least tried to look like one. It was like little metal vines, intertwining with one another and enclosing around a small oval stone. Aside from its obvious unorthodox shape though, there was one more flaw in the trinket.

The metal vines, though entangled, had no ways of sticking with one another, a drop being more than enough to dismantle the ring into its component parts, a fact Viole demonstrated just now in a moment of clumsiness.

He grunted. He collected the pieces and started yet another attempt to put the back together and make them stick. He let his mind drift further to the group of five, right now bickering over how impossible it would be for only one contestant -or none, as the orange haired one hoped- to come through the door. He rolled his eyes before twisting messily one of the vines. The number of contestants for the next test was going to be the same, regardless of how many there were going to be now. Even if the Administator has to bring in Regulars from another facility, it's stupid to think that-  
_Crack._

_Oh, fuck me..._

He looked at his hand. The ring was now in pieces, falling on the floor unceremoniously and cosntantly glared at by its careless craftsman. Viole made a small mental note to himself. _Copy someone who uses fire._

"Uhm..."

He jumped a bit.

He raised his head, his golden eyes meeting the brown ones of the little girl. He didn't notice when the little girl had gotten up and came over him. She was stretching her arms, apparently offering something to him. Curious, he looked at her little fists, holding a small chocolate bar in them.

He took the piece of candy, with a bit of hesitation. He kept looking at her doubtfully, making her stutter a bit.  
"I...thought you might be a bit hungry..."  
It was rather befitting of her age, Viole thought. Childish, innocent and rather sweet of her, if you asked him.

He must have smiled a bit, because the little girl was suddenly a little more comfortable, even though her face was still bright like a tomato. He at least felt like he was smiling. How did she know with the black glass mask on his head covering everything, he had absolutely no idea. She was about to leave before he raised his hand, telling her to wait. He searched his left pocket, where he usually kept sweets of his own and got out some bubblegum. Cherry flavoured.

"What's your name, little miss?" he asked, startling her.  
"M-Miseng...", she answered.

_Miseng..._

He handed her over the gum, his gift accepted with little hesitation. She smiled at him, brightly. She bowed her head in gratitude and seemed rather eager to sit next to him and perhaps chat with him, a gesture Viole would gladly accept. However...  
"Miseng! Come over here!"  
Her new-found friends didn't share her idealistic perception. Eagering her to come back, she stood still for a few moments before rushing back to them. Not before sparing one last look at least. She quickly faded into the background, the earful she received from Goseng being the only noise in the room. Viole sighed. He couldn't really blame her, could he?

_Ding!_

The second elevator had arrived finally. But something was odd.

The doors slung open and from them, walked out a man wearing a bear pelt. It was ironic, but that was hardly what made everybody stare at him.

He had various injuries on his body. Arrows on his back, cuts and bruises all over his torso. Viole could swear that he was missing some of his fingers.

The bear man tried to say something, but instead of sound, blood came out of his mouth. He grabbed his open stomach and fell on the ground, bleeding. It was a miracle he was even alive, alas his every breathe coming with a spit of blood.

He reached out his free hand and pleaded. "H-help me-" he coughed. "Help me, I beg you!"

He looked around, to see if anybody was heading towards the man's aid. Nobody moved.

Heaving a sigh, Viole put the pieces of the now shattered ring into his pocket. It could wait a bit. He waltzed over the body and towards the first aid kit hanging on the wall. After opening and taking the bandages he needed, he walked over the man and started plugging out the arrows, each time receiving a fresh stain of blood on his cloak...and a thank you.

He kept bandaging him and instructing him to press at the spots he was right now treating. As he was covering him -albeit messily- with bandages, he felt the stares of the other Regulars on his back. Stares of disapproval, mostly. He kept doing his thing, even if it started becoming rather annoying. He looked up in frustration, most of their eyes, save for the orange haired man's, quickly changing direction. He kept staring at Viole though.

"You do realize that you are just making the next test harder, right?" said the orange haired man.

Viole didn't answer. He didn't care enough to answer.

After all, he was the only one that was going to pass this test.

_Ding._

* * *

Yihwa hated the 20th Floor. Mainly because its heightened difficulty required an amount of skill that did not correspond with the firepower she was born with. Can there ever be something as "too strong"? For her, yes, there was. It wasn't until the age of 6 that she had started setting her juice on fire, but ever since, it was part of her everyday life. After all, being part of a clan of fire-users, it wasn't much of a problem. It was more or less like sneezing. But, as she grew older, that "sneezing" of sorts, that should in average just burn a few pieces of paper and be subdued over the years with a little practice, just continued getting bigger and bigger with her. Hotter. Worse.

She was about 12 when she had set the pool of the Yeon Family's Children Swimming Team on fire that people realized there was a slight problem. Even the best Rankers of the Family had trouble extinquishing her flames, earning her the much deserved title "Flare".

But right now, the reason was the brat that had his arm around her shoulders and held her like a trophy.

It was all part of her agreement with the company she had taken the loan from after repeatedly failing the 20th Floor's test. All of her bets would be cleared if she was his property during the 20th Floor's test. Disgusting, humiliating and overall degrading. But when they presented their wonderful offer of taking all of her organs and selling them, there was not much of a choice on her part.

All this could be avoided if she just asked a little help from her mother. But, she was too proud to do that and with a lot of criteria to meet. It wasn't like her mother wouldn't be more than eager or happy to help, it was just...She felt like she was failing her. That and her mother had better things to do than helping her daughter when she screamed for help for every little silly thing.

Besides, it was for only one test. Despite it becoming a long one, it was just one test. Even though the brat made several attempts to molest her, a little bit of her fire solved the problem quite easily, so there was no trouble.

But, as the brat's bodyguard repeatedly reminded her;

"Don't forget who holds the lease."

_And they wonder why mom never got married._

Annoyed, she complied once more. This metal elevator had the temperature of an oven and it was suffocating her. She wanted to get out of there.

The elevator came to a stop. As she was about to get outside, she felt the hand on her shoulder coming dangerously closer to her chest.

"Hey, what do you think you are doing?!" she said as the doors were slinging open.  
"What's the problem?" said Prince. "You're mine now."

She would gladly burn him alive weren't it for Lurker's -his annoying bodyguard- eyes piercing her back, almost begging her to do it. _You scumming filthy man..._ So once again, she complied, but not before burning Prince's hand for a last time.

She looked towards the room. They were separated in several groups, but only two of them drew her attention, one of five people and one of two. The group of six seemed ordinary enough, save for the glowing wing on the giant's back and the punkish look of the silver haired man. The orange haired man did seem to recognize her though, if his sweaty face and 'Oh hell no' expression told her anything. Not to mention his failed attempts to use his fluffy eared friend as a shield in case she "blew up", in his words. The other group was not that normal.

The two people of the other group were strange, to say the least; It was a mummy and a beggar. The mummy wearing a bear pelt, his gigantic blooded weapon by his side, muffled incoherent noises coming from his mouth alongside an occasional spit of blood. The beggar wore a round glass mask and had blood stains all over his body, while his clothes looked like he had just faced a bomb head-on, having no injuries whatsoever. He was occupied with something small enough for it to be in his palm, but what it was, she couldn't tell.

She felt sorry for the guy, but she suspected that his smell was not exactly something she wanted to find out. She did what she could to stay as far away from him as possible. Her group however, led by Prince? Not so much. If anything, they were heading their way this instance.

Prince skipped playfully their way, with Yiwha always under his arm and suddenly stopped in front of the two, being actively ignored by them. Lurker, on the other hand, had found an acquaintance on the other group, or simply a new victim to torture verbally.

"Hey." said Prince commandingly. "Move." None of the two didn't budge. Now that Yihwa was closer, she was rather glad to find out that none of the two smelled like garbage. There was though a stink of gunpowder -and blood- in the air, originating from the masked man. _Did you get catch a grenade or something?_ She also noticed that the something he was tinkering with was a ring, or at least pieces of it. She was not the only one to notice however, as Prince also saw the man's little occupation and decided to get his attention through it; By slapping his hands.

The ring's pieces fell on the floor. Yihwa knew what was coming next. The man would shoot up and attack Prince, who would in turn snap his fingers and surround him with his bodyguards. He would then comply to the brat's wishes and he would in the end turn into a dog that would continuously praise him and his power. It _always_happened. She adverted her gaze and stared at the sign on top of the platform, the word _Strongest_ flashing in her eyes like a neon sign. She waited for the usual quarrel. The usual "What do you think you are doing?". The usual fighting and stupidity. The usual mess men put themselves into.

She closed her eyes. But nothing happened. She opened them again and looked at the man, who was picking up the pieces of the ring as if nothing happened, as if Prince or his bodyguards or anyone for the matter never existed. When he collected them all, he went back to his own business. He went back at trying to put the pieces back together, with the similar excitement to that of a kid trying to put the pieces of a puzzle together.

Prince, on the other hand, was getting madder by the ignorance the man was showing of his _glory and superiority. _Gritting his teeth, he said again. "I'M TALKING TO YOU, YOU PIECE OF TRASH!" Nothing. He was getting frustrated again. This time, he decided that the best way to get his attention was by kicking the man in the face. He was about to do just that, but Yihwa this time stepped in.  
"Knock it off, he is just a poor beggar." In the corner of her fuschia eyes, she could swear that she saw the man's eye twitch at the sound of the name "beggar", but nonetheless continued minding his own business.

"Poor beggar my ass! Just step aside, bitch!"

Prince raised his hand and tried to slap her. _Tried ._Instead, his little act of _superiority_was stopped by no other than the masked man.

Yihwa was surprised once again. And as the beggar tightened his grip on Prince's wrist, the small yet audible cracks were enough for the loanshark's son to let out a small scream. "You need to work on your manners a bit more than that." said the masked man. One more crack and Prince was already on the ground, trying to leave from the man's grip. Any more and his hand would break.

She couldn't tell if he was going to tighten his grip even more or let go of him. Lurker at least didn't let her find out. A gigantic hand made out of Shinsoo spawned out of the ground, immediately grabbing and tightening the assaulter in the same manner. The beggar, though, didn't budge.

"Let go of my Master this instant!" No reaction. Lurker was starting to get uneasy. Wasn't he crushing him? This hand was capable of bending people multiple times his size, Yet, the beggar kept firmly Prince's hand into a crushing hold. The pressure from the gargantuan hand didn't seem to bother him either. In fact, just a shrug was enough for the hand to start cracking, before rebuilding itself. Seeing as the situation was going out of hand, another one of Prince's crooks stepped in. Yihwa remembered this man. After all, half of the previous test was passed with Prince and Lurker bragging of their most precious weapon. That and his black and yellow eyes were not exactly something that could be easily forgotten.

Yihwa was certain that, this time, the beggar would finally back down. Actually, she wouldn't even blame him. Somehow, Prince had managed to hire one of the strongest people on the 20th Floor, a literal hell-spawned devil. She knew that the beggar should surrender under a threat like that. And so did Lurker.

"Do you..." the pale man stuttered, but found his composure nonetheless. "Do you know who this is? This is the man that defeated that Hatsu, the Flying Sword! He is the Devil of the Right Arm, Rapdevil!" said Lurker as a smirk started crawling his lips.

He indeed looked like a devil. Black clothes, a hairstyle of black and yellow that was like it came out of a cultist's salon and equally black clothes with an infinity of brown eyes on the sides. And those unforgettably nightmarish eyes. By looks alone, he did indeed seem like the man that defeated Hatsu.

Yet, the masked man didn't budge again. If it weren't for his mask, Yihwa could swear that he grinned ever so lightly for a moment.

"Well, I am actually quite interested in the Devil of the Right Arm, if you ask me." said the mummy guy, startling everyone. He got up too and, despite his ridiculous outfit, his great height was more than enough to intimidate Lurker and his men. Even Rapdevil stood uneasy, being several inches shorter from the cleaver carrying giant. "But the test's rules are definite. No fighting in between tests. So we should all just relax for the moment and each mind his own business, don't you agree?" They did as the big man bid, despite unwillingly. Even the masked man, though hesitating, let go of Prince's hand, red and a bit swollen from the assault.

"I was just...impulsive."  
"Then I would like you to control your impulses in the future, Mr. Regular."

The all turned to the source of the new voice, coming from the curtain dressed platform.

The Administator of the Test had finally arrived...

_...That's a Ranker?_

If it weren't for the status that followed the Rankers that had reached the very top of the Tower, Yihwa would swear that this was a kid that just really loved baseball, his grandmother having knit him a scarf that would fit better on a White Steel Eel.

He was too cute. His big blue eyes were technically begging them to hug him like a plushie. His serious stance only added to that adorable air around him. The room started getting filled with chatter, mostly revolving around the Administrator, and a camera flashed several times in the commotion.

In spite of all that, the Ranker moved towards the messily covered sign and grabbed the sheet, removing it with a swift movement.

"Welcome to the second test. The Strongest Regular Competition." announced the Ranker. "I am Mule Love and I will be your supervisor."


	3. Monsters amongst us- Part 2

_The rules of this test are as simple as they get. What you have to do is hit this machine with Shinsoo strengthening. It's a punching machine, just with Shinsoo . It will do the proper calculations then and give you your score, which will be announced on the board opposite of this stage and your rankings will be displayed. As you can see, if I hit it like...this, my score of 13200000 is displayed almost immediately on the small area on the left. You only get one shot, so make it count._

She repeated the rules to herself once again as yet another person hit the machine to get a four digit score. Satisfied, as he ranked first, he went down the staircase only for the next Regular to be called and hit the machine too, a circle that was repeated again and again and again.

The test was simple. Too simple for a 20th Floor Test. Perhaps the Administrators were counting on its simplicity to be able to get rid of as many regulars as possible, or, perhaps it was yet another gift from Prince's father, like the arranged team and herself.

She rolled her eyes in disgust, the urge to hurl her breakfast arising from the thought alone. If he had the money to hire somebody like Rapdevil, the Devil of the Right Hand, he could hire somebody else instead of her. _Not like it's possible to find somebody in the caliber of the 10 Families in the underworld, but never mind..._

_Bing!_

Another Regular hit the machine. Something seemed familiar about this one. _Maybe because he looks like a carrot in black?_ His face had a forced grin plastered all over it until he witnessed his score. Yihwa looked at the board too, to see what kind of score would force such a quick color loss.

_...Ah...Well, that's indeed a bad score..._

He dragged his feet off the stage and sat with a loud thud next to a woman -Goseng, if she remembered from the board correctly- and a kid -Miseng-. They didn't seem all that better than him either.

He sunk in his knees and watched another Regular walk to the platform. A short girl, with furry, pointy ears, brown unlike her grey hair. She hit the machine too and watched the board in anticipation, her hopes for a high score evident in her green eyes. But that's what they stayed. She felt bad about it, but she chuckled a bit at how her ears dropped when she was placed right beneath the previous contestant, with whom she sat together just now.

"It's okay, Nia Nya..." he assured her. "I bet Teddy will avenge us all." A tall man snorted mockingly at the statement. A man that indeed reminded her of a Teddy.

She sighed and sunk her head between her legs too, the comforting pats from her friend not exactly doing their job. "Are we screwed, Mr. Wangnan?" she said wearily.

He didn't answer.

It was a simple test. That simplicity though was what made it such a harsh test. If you were talented with Shinsoo, you pass. If not, piss off. It didn't allow room for loopholes, room for those strong in other areas to prevail. No loopholes for the strong, the intelligent, the quick or cunning to use. It was a test favoring those strong in Shinsoo.

And that saddened her, even if just a bit.

As a stubby woman with one too many rings walked down the platform, trying to preserve some of the dignity -her score was unmentionable-, three Regulars walked on the platform, despite only one of them being called. It was a weird trio, even weirder than the mummy-bear man and the man with the mask. The first, a short kid with lazy eyes, hit the machine, only to get a low score. Despite that though, the empty smile widened instead of fading from his lips. He got off the platform, the taller of the other two following suit. Something was awfully off with him. For one, he never hit the machine.

Secondly, he was rather slimy, green goo dripping from his unfortunate clown uniform. Yihwa wouldn't mind him (much) if his poor hygiene was the biggest problem. The problem was his expression. It looked...frozen. His single cyclopic eye was just staring in a random direction, neither moving or having the familiar glint of an actual eye. And his mouth...It was as if somebody had duck taped it into a smile, never closing, just hanging open with saliva dripping and mixing with the goo.

Yihwa almost vomited when he shot his tongue to successfully catch a passing fly. When he started to chew it in excitement, she knew that she had to sit down or else.

She sat next to Miseng, the girl with the backpack seeming like the most appealing at the moment. She didn't notice her, or at least the way she was eying her bag. _I hope she won't mind if I hurl in it..._

The green clown caught yet another fly. He was proud of his triumph, the celebratory chewing echoing across the room and in Yihwa's ears. _...When I hurl in it..._

Prince's voice was not the pleasant distraction she hoped for, but hey. You can't have everything. "This is boring" he complained.

He walked a full circle around his followers before complaining again. "This is very boring." Yihwa couldn't help herself but shake her head. If he wanted entertainment, perhaps he should try embracing his latent talent in catching flies with his tongue. He could use the nutrients for his height.

She chortled at the image, shortly before a foul taste started covering her mouth. _That's what you get when you think like a man, Yihwa...You fully deserved it..._ She looked around in hopes of finding anything close to a vending machine. Nothing. Perhaps she should start carrying some water in these tests.

"This is boring" repeated Prince. And he would do so again if it wasn't for his sudden epiphany. His glowing grin at least told her that he had one. _Perhaps he discovered his secret talent at fly catching?_ "This is a lame test. And I had my hopes up because they said that the tests on the 20th Floor were different, but it's just a little kid competition." He passed to clap his hands. "Let's make it a little more interesting...with a bet, yes?" His pale bodyguard nodded, his ever present grin in his face widening in approval. He had scored well enough to be 4th, so a little game wouldn't harm Lurker. She, on the other hand, had better things to do. "The person who scores the highest will have ownership of the Yeon." She saw a door next to the stage. _Maybe that's the bathroom? Well, I could use a tap, actually._ She got up and waltzed towards it, but stopped to a halt when she realized what Prince just said.

"What?!" she screeched.

"What you heard."

Something snapped in her mind. She threw a punch at his face, only for him to avoid it for a hair's breadth. She only managed to scorch some of his hair ends, the smell of burned gel and hair immediately hitting her nose. But that wasn't enough. She wanted to smell his flesh burning.

She went for another hit, but a giant's hand holding her shoulder stopped her. She snapped her neck behind her, ready to assault whoever stopped her from delivering her justice. The man stopped her marching fist with his free palm, unfazed despite the heat and the hole burned open by her fist.

The tall man, Teddy as she heard, spoke in a calm, yet stern voice. "Trust me, this will only get you in trouble."

She her way out of his hands, the chuckling voice of Prince only inviting her to kick that smile off his face.

"Yes, it will indeed." he said smugly. "Think about it though. If you come in first, you'd be the owner of yourself, free from any debt."

Her head was throbbing, her attempts to calm down being mostly fruitless. But she considered the deal. If she got the highest score, she would get to pass the test _and_ free herself from her debt. It was killing two birds with one stone.

"Unless, of course, you don't think you can win."

On the other hand though, she really, _really_ wanted to mark his face with her fist. It was like hot iron, it would leave a mark on both his face and his pride. She would, however, lose her chance at freedom, albeit gaining her pride back.

_Punch him in the face or accept the bet, punch him in the face or accept the bet, punch him in the face or..._ she chanted over and over in her mind.

She took another deep breath.

And then she smiled.

_Accept the bet, win, _then_ punch him in the face._

She accepted the deal before walking off for the bathroom, not noticing the smile that crept in Prince's lips, his chuckle of victory or the ring that fell apart once again.

* * *

Dei Fabula- Chapter 2- Monsters amongst us- Part 2

* * *

Arrogance. Pride.

The gravest of all sins. The first of all sins. The father of all sins.

It was the sin Horyang knew too well. He had suffered the pain the proud could inflict to others to prove their superiority, to prove that they were great. He had met many men who suffered from the insanity caused from pride, the illusion of superiority and godhood clouding their judgment and harming those around themselves.

"Heh. Snotty bitch. You'll get what you deserve."

Prince was one of those men. But he was young. He could still be taught humility.

And Horyang would be the one to do it.

"Why don't you shut up now?" Horyang squished Prince's shoulder. It was surprising, to say the least, that his bodyguards didn't jump at him the moment he stood behind him. Ignoring that, he pressed on. "Can't you see that the other Regulars are repulsed from your actions?"

Prince lost his smirk almost immediately. He obviously hated criticism. "Are you telling me to care for those who are going to fail right now? Seriously? Stop annoying me on my date and buzz off, before you get yourself in trouble, teddy bear."

Even his favorite nickname sounded like crap coming from his mouth.

"Immature" he muttered, audibly enough for Prince to be annoyed. "Remember that you, too, will stop at some point."

Conveniently enough, his name appeared on the board, summoning him too on the stage. He hasted to the Machine, his wing changing shape to that of a fiery red fist and his right arm corresponding to it. He climbed the stairs, the aged wood crying in frustration under his boots. The fire from his right hand, burning brightly and half his size, was slowly charring and making progress on his sleeve, gradually baring his metal gauntlet.

He now stood before the machine, its mascot's eyes arrogantly staring at him. But no, it wasn't the stare of the picture's red eyes that made him hesitate to hit the machine. If anything, it invited him to hit it as hard as he could.

But that wasn't it.

Admittedly, he didn't want to use this ability. He had other, far more appropriate techniques to use, techniques that would give him a score unparalleled by any other. He wanted to use his right arm's true form, to gain Prince's admiration and make him finally listen.

Yet, he was hesitating.

He spared a look over his left shoulder and quickly searched for the masked man.

There he was. Still absorbed in his little trinket, the incomprehensible muffled banter of his new friend and his building frustration -He could swear he heard a 'fuck' after a small cling-, building a wall around himself and the world. Horyang was baffled, really. Humming songs, trading candy with Miseng, treating a person in need and defending a damsel in distress, while a few moments ago he launched five people across the room without even moving a muscle. It nagged him endlessly. How could he care so little about the test? Why wasn't he actively trying to befriend possible allies or at least intimidate possible enemies? Why was he trying so desperately to alienate himself from everybody else right now?

...Perhaps because he didn't want to be attached with them. Maybe his previous behavior was a mistake, was a temporal giving in the impulses of socializing while he had a goal that transcended beyond them. Maybe he was feeling guilty about what he was going to do, thus doing small deeds of goodness to hold off his remorse. Maybe a false sense of superiority gave him the illusion of dominance on all others, gleefully and inwardly congratulating his benevolence over lowly trash such as themselves. Maybe he just didn't care for the test in the first place.

Horyang knew that, whatever it was, he wouldn't like it. Not one bit. If the masked man was planning something... He needed his tramp card. He couldn't risk it.

He tightened his fiery fist, the leather belts covering had tightened in response under his heated gauntlet.

He knelt and jabbed the machine's glowing target, a small flare of red light shining momentarily, as it was accompanied by a deafening bang.

His blue wing returned to normal and so did his fist. He couldn't say the same for his coat though. He patted some of the still burning ashes away, hoping to save whatever remained from his unfortunate sleeve.

The widening holes stared in his eyes in disapproval. Morbidly, he grabbed the sleeve and teared it off, discarding the useless fabric in frustration and disappointment. This was the second sleeve he ruined in just 1 hour. _Just give me a break._

He sighed and turned around, only to sigh once more. His score of 6350 wasn't bad at all. If anything, it was impressive in comparison to the previous high-score's of 3600 Akraptor got. But it still fell short for the point he was trying to make. Maybe he should really have used another form.

_Clap. Clap. Clap._

Prince seemed amused, at least.

"Impressive, dearest Teddy of ours." he sneered. Scores aside, Prince was really starting to get on his nerves.

"It seems your mother didn't raise you properly, kid." growled Horyang. Oh, how much he wanted to flatten that smile. But, Prince's smile had this annoying quirk. It had the tendency to widen, as it just did.

"I'm impressed, albeit a little. It seems you know how to hit a bit." He snapped his fingers, the Goliath that was always by his side cracking his rusty knuckles in response. "This looks like it'll be a worthwhile match."

Sparing a quick look at him, Rapdevil headed for the punching machine with nothing but a small nod. He marched to the stage, but abruptly stopped before Horyang.

He talked.

"Hey, friend. Have you ever seen the devil?"

His voice lacked the ups and lows, the wavering or liveliness of a human voice. It was the voice of somebody who was willing to make people suffer before killing them.

Horyang didn't answer.

"I will show you, then."

With steady and heavy steps, those of a killer, he was soon standing before the mocking smile of the picture's Ranker and also, the glowing disk. He raised his right arm.

He took a deep breath. And then it happened.

Horyang's stomach turned when Rapdevil's arm started darkening and cracking, the rearranging and uneven swelling doing nothing but upset his stomach. He turned his eyes away when spikes started protruding from it. Goseng's glasses were a wonderful alternative to nature's proof that she would be an excellent horror movie director. Goseng spared him a sheepish smile, she too not being a fan of the horror genre. She was covering Miseng's eyes, the curious lass being a bit too eager to witness the transformation. The two had locked eyes in a silent agreement of only enjoying the marvelous sonata of cracking bones, clothes violently tearing and steel hitting against a wall of Suspendium, the auditory sensation ending with a humble "bing".

Horyang broke his gaze from her eyes and looked at the board, scowling almost immediately. _11988 points..._ It was a good score. No wonder people believed him to be the Devil of the Right Arm. Horyang was regretting his decision more and more with each passing second.

Prince walked next to him in slow steps, applauding his minion's success to go to the top of the rankings. "That's the Devil of the Right Arm of the rumors for you." he sneered before cackling like a fool. His applaud got louder as Rapdevil was approaching them. "Marvelous! Simply majestic. You were worth every single penny. _Very_ good." He put his hands back in his pockets before leering at Horyang. "What's this?" he asked in ridicule. "Looks like the one stopping here is going to be you, Teddy bear."

* * *

"That was refreshing!"

Yihwa cleaned her hands one more time before discarding yet another paper towel in the trash can with a fwoosh. She had to admit it, she would _love_ to have her toothbrush right now. She could still feel some of the foul taste in the back of her mouth, something the tap water didn't help to extinguish. _But you have to be happy with whatever you have, right?_

She fixed her blouse and headed for the door, but a familiar blue glimmer by the corner of her eye stopped her march. She turned her head, grunting in frustration at the sight of her hair band, standing unceremoniously on top of the sink. She forgot to put it on again. She looked at her reflection sheepishly, the jeweled flower's absence becoming more and more evident in her eyes.

Her hair seemed odd without the armament decorating them, so she quickly put it back on, apologizing to herself for the neglect.

She gave herself one last check-up. And then she smiled in approval, before heading for the steel door again.

After all, it was time to show them why they called her the flare.

...Now that she thought about it, towels didn't go _fwoosh._

She looked back before running for the closest extinguisher.

_Okay, not for _that_ reason._

After emptying its white contents all over the floor, she finally headed outside.

"Took you long enough. Making yourself pretty for me?"

Flashing his toothy grin, Prince slipped her way with a playful rhythm. He was so certain he had won his bet, his eyes already undressing her from her stockings and blouse.

He pointed at the screen, his minion's name shining on it like a neon sign of a Fast Food restaurant. "Are you gonna be alright? Looks like it's going to be very hard for you to pass that! I'll say it first, but what's his is also mine!"

She spared him a flaring glare, her eyes burning bright...alongside Prince's shoulder.

"Fire. FIRE!"

He bounced around like a monkey on drugs, his multi-eyed blobbed excuses of a henchman quickly rushing to their _young master's_ aid. She chuckled at their futile attempts to extinguish her flames from his jacket. But no matter how much Lurker smacked the flaming Prince with his own coat, not matter how much they screamed, made him roll or blew him, the flames just kept slowly and steadily march down his purple sleeve. Thankfully -for Prince at least- one of his body guards had the genius idea to cut off the burning fabric, the comedy ending with a ceremonious _fwooo._ _Meh,_ she thought. _Good jokes are short anyways. I do like repeating them in a grander scale, but..._

The only thing stopping her from burning him alive was the danger of burning everything else in this room alive too. _Something I'd like to avoid this once at least._

_Bing_.

"Ah- I'm next."

"Will you be able to pull your weight up there, _love_?" said Prince.

"Young Master, I'm sorry to inform you, but there are some things that are just simply impossible for her to do." chuckled Lurker. Prince burst too in laughter before he recomposed himself with a wide grin.

But to his surprise, she didn't respond with fire or anger. She didn't seem upset at all.

She simply smiled.

"I'm sorry for saying something like this..." she said politely at the two. "But the both of you should learn to pull _your_ weight."

Their glares did nothing to erase that smile from Yihwa's face. If anything, her eyes glowed in determination, both figuratively and literally.

She climbed the stairs and quickly found herself standing just a few feet away from the floating disk she had to hit. She cracked her knuckles and stretched a bit and then took another step forward. She wouldn't want to get a wimpy hit now, would she?

She clenched her fist and pulled it back. _This is going to be easy_, she thought in the overwhelming confidence of a member of the Ten Families. By hitting the punching machine, she was saying goodbye to all of her problems. No more Prince, no more Lurker, no more debt. All packed in just one punch.

She smiled again, launching her fist at the Suspendium. Imagining Prince's face on it helped a lot at aiming.

...Too bad it didn't help at calculating the distance.

She lean forward, but something tangled itself onto her feet. And suddenly, everything around her started running past her eyes, racing away or towards her. She felt something barely nabbing her knuckle, a momentarily sensation that left as quickly as it came. This was not how punching somebody was supposed to be like.

A red surface was coming dangerously closer to her. And closer. And closer. She tried to get away from the speeding object, but to no avail.

Collision was unavoidable.

_Bong!_

Laughter echoed behind her, its sole source probably throwing pirouettes at her expense. Pirouettes, little songs of humiliation and ridicule, the occasional cough from laughing too much at the joke. Herself.

She clutched her head, the nauseating pain throbbing in her head like an annoying flu that didn't just go away. It didn't hurt enough to distract her from her doom, it didn't make her dizzy enough to not know what was happening or happened. She tripped and hit her head on the machine, after barely touching the target of Suspendium. Nothing to think over. No achievement to be proud of despite her demise. Only failure. Herself.

The floor was becoming blurrier and blurrier, small rain drops dripping on and steaming morbidly away from the aging floor. It was from the same rain that was submerging her cheeks, warming them and reddening them with care. Crystal. Short-lived. Each tear disappearing in threads of steam and dispensing in the air like a fog, clouding her vision ever more.

This was the end. And Yihwa knew it.

_Bing_.

_I don't think there's any use looking at it anymore..._

The room was silent for once.

Maybe she had cut out the sound or maybe Prince was catching his breath after his little show, only to continue it more vigorously and loudly.

But suddenly, instead of the little songs and dancing show, shouts and protests echoed in the big room. The source of them again Prince.

"What the- From a hit like _that_?!"

She didn't turn around. The bastard was obviously pulling a prank right now. Wasn't it enough already that she failed? Why did he have to add salt on her wounds? He won, okay? He didn't need to try and trick her into seeing her own score. She didn't want to see it. Just be left alone.

But the shouts didn't go away. Instead, they turned into loud murmurs of disbelief, interjections of approval or grimaces of approbation.

_Could it..._

She searched blindly for the machine's square body. She shut her eyes once more and pulled herself up slowly when she had finally found it. The world around her was still blurry and a little bit shaking, but thankfully not spinning. _Good_. She rubbed her eyes, cleaning away the disappearing tears and comforting her heavy eyelids. She shook her head a bit, the shaking and blurriness leaving her head at a long last. _At least I won't have to worry about tripping_, she thought moodily.

She turned around and squinted her eyes a little, the artificial light being a little too bright for her comfort. She had to blink several times before the world returned to the way it was supposed to. The red curtains of the barely standing stage, the tiny Ranker messily enjoying a bucket of chicken legs, the beggar's shining helmet in the edge of the stage.

She searched for her name on the board, starting from the end. It would be arrogant to start from the beginning after a hit like that now, wouldn't it?

But she couldn't find her name or her score.

She kept going up, one name and number each time, to make sure she doesn't accidentally skip it.

She couldn't find it. Not in the 13th place of Nia Nya's 430, not in the 10th place of Miseng's 670, not even in the 3rd place of Horyang's 6350. No.

Her name was proudly flashing in the first place, the small crown flickering rapidly on its left. She had actually to look twice to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

But it was there. _Yeon Yiwha. 48989 points._

She could feel a smile appear on her puffing face. Her cheeks were flaring up once again and her stomach turned pleasantly as she descended the squeaking stairs.

She had won. She had actually won.

Yihwa didn't know if she wanted to dance. She didn't know if she wanted to sing, dance or just skip around like a little girl in the candy store. She had never before felt so light, so relieved, so happy. For a simple test like this, of all things.

She didn't know if she wanted to sing or dance or jump around.

But she knew that she wanted to do _one thing_.

And that was let Prince's face, gagging in disbelief, sink in her mind and memory.

She greeted him with a smile as she was approaching, a smile that was slowly turning into a grin similar to that the loan-shark's son fashioned. She stood before him, her eyes always glued on his pale face.

He really did look like the pathetic scum of a man he was now. How did Lurker put up with him? How did anyone, really?

But it didn't matter anymore. She was free, free as a bird now. She had better things to do with her time rather than stare at his face. So she walked away and past him, shutting her eyes in satisfaction as she was regaining her lost pride. She definitely had far better things to do.

_...On the other hand though..._

She spared him one last look, shining an _apologetic_ smile upon him. She mustered the sweetest voice she could, its sound deepening the scowl on his face.

"I guess our...relationship..." Her smile flickered a bit in disgust. "...has ended. It was not fun. Thanks for the test though." she chirped before at last walking away.

"This is far from over. I'm next." retorted a pissed off Prince.

She didn't bother to glance his way this time and continued her catwalk unfazed, letting her mock echo in his red ears. "Is there any use at even looking at the score of somebody who climbs by borrowing the strength of others?"

There was a small click on the teeth, a spit -probably her way- and then stomping.

She must have really hit a nerve there. _Good. He deserved every word of it._

It wasn't as if he could do anything about it now. She was the owner of herself, free to do whatever she wanted once more.

Maybe she overreacted a bit...At both burning his jacket and insulting him like that. But he tried to slap her. That, and the misshaped atrocity was just struggling to cover him.

She heard a thump, presumably said jacket had just hit the floor. _I really should apologize to that jacket. _She took a glimpse. The idiot was stretching while his guard-dogs showered him in all kinds of cheering and support for his imminent _victory_. _Like cheers would ever help raise his score._

He smashed his fist against the machine, clearly imagining her face on it. He started to stretch his arm again in discomfort, his surly eyes glued on the board as it made the calculations.

With all this stretching and small cracks, she too felt the need to copy him. She stretched her hands upwards, her shoulders warming up pleasantly, as if a warm blanket was covering them. She had forgotten of how numb and stiff her shoulders were. _Having to duck for so long for that dimwit can do that to you, I guess..._

She rubbed them in satisfaction. "Ah, sweet freedom~" puffed Yihwa in relief.

There was absolutely nothing that could ruin this moment.

_Bing!_

"Y-Young Master! What a magnificent score!"

...It couldn't be...right?

There was no way the idiot outdid her score, right? It was just Lurker and his henchmen trying to mend his wounded pride, right?

She glanced at the board and once again, started from the ending. Clearly, it was just a misunderstanding on her part. It was impossible for him to... She was a member of the Ten Families. She was a woman. She was the daughter of the most nice and beautiful woman in the Tower. There was absolutely no way the son of some loan shark to have surpassed her score, right?!

...But reality sank in. She found his name on the first place of the digital board. _Prince, 51154 points._

Her calm smile slowly disappeared from her face, a red frown taking over her light face. She could hear him behind her, smugly gloating over his victory.

She span her head, Prince's beaming smile meeting with her dark glare.

"Climb by borrowing the strength of others?" he asked as one of his blobby henchmen rubbed his winning hand. "On the contrary, it's_ they_ that are borrowing _my_ strength to climb. So just sit quietly by my side. It's the best bet you've got, _Flare_ of Yeon."

She was speechless. No matter how much she tried, not a single word could escape her lips.

This was _not_ happening.

This was just a cruel joke. A very cruel, stupid joke.

She had done so well. Even though she didn't actually hit the machine, her score was almost five times greater than the man's who defeated the goddamned Hatsu of the Sword. It just had to be a miscalculation.

_...Wait...I didn't actually hit..._

She shouted at the Administrator of the Test, hope once again lifting her mind...but... "Mister Love, let me go again! I will do it properly this ti-"

"No retries." he gave her the cold shoulder, not even looking up from his cold chicken.

Prince cracked up a wide smirk before throwing another fit of laughter at her expense. She glared at that smile, hoping to make it combust into flames.

He raised his hands, expecting a get-together hug from her. "Just give up and come back into my hands, love!" he chuckled.

Her clenched fist widened. This was going too far.

She would definitely punch a flaming hole through him if a silent chuckle didn't attract her attention. She turned at the source of the voice. It was a pale man in his mid-thirties -could you really tell those things with Shinsoo around? Her mother looked like she had just hit 20.-, punkish clothes and silver short hair.

He was laughing alone, the confused stares of the rest of the Regulars not bothering him one bit. The chuckles didn't seem to be ending any time soon, but she at least wanted to know why they were there in the first place.

She opened her mouth to ask, rather angrily to boot, but Prince beat her to it.

"What's so funny, baldy?"

"Can't help it. This is too funny." he said in between laughs.

_Yes, the situation was very laughable, thank you for your input._

"What?" asked Prince in confusion. Clearly, he was alien with the fact that their argument was, in all retrospect, ridiculous. The man licked his dry lips and explained, the surpassed laughter turning into a wide amused smirk. "I just find it hilarious that you idiots are bickering amongst yourselves in order to get second place."

Now it was her turn to say "What?". He pointed with his chin at the stage.

She followed his yellow eyes. She looked past Prince and his henchmen, past the sulking carrot head and his friend, past the little girl and next to the mummy bear. All she could see was the masked man, still tinkering with his unassembled ring.

"He..." drew the man her attention again. "Is the strongest Regular in here."

Yihwa looked back at the masked man. He was really small. Shorter than her, definitely taller than Prince. She couldn't help but think when he saw him. _That guy?_

Surely, he had defended her, true. He was also considerably stronger than your average Joe, otherwise he would be kissing Prince's ass at the sight of the Devil of the Right Arm.

But the _strongest Regular_? _Go away._

Still, Yihwa couldn't help but stare his way. His code must have appeared on the board for some time now, because he was shook by the bandaged hand of his friend. He pointed at the board, the masked man -or boy, now that she thought about it- snapping out of his trance and nodding his head thankfully for the notification.

He stood up, just after placing his little obsession in his pocket. He truly had a small stature. He climbed the old stairs like everyone else, the wooden planks squeaking at his light steps. He stood before the punching machine like everyone else. He took a deep breath like everyone else.

But he didn't hit the machine.

The masked man raised his hand and gently placed on the Suspendium disk. She saw him puff his chest with a deep breath, just a moment before a riotous explosion shook the stage and the whole room. She covered her face in surprise, as did everybody else from the flying splinters of wood and metal.

The Suspendium burst like a bottle of wine, a wave of cyan energy reaping momentarily from it, destroying everything on its path.

Her ears stopped ringing after a while. But that didn't matter at the moment.

She could only stare in awe at the destruction caused from that single, gentle stroke. The machine was in smithereens. Most of it disappeared from the cyan shock-wave, leaving only a fragment of the front side and the Suspendium disk, floating alone over the hole that dug the ground and attempted to dug through the wall.

She looked at the board, and like everybody else's, her jaw unhinged at the score. _Viole,_ she read. _1391045 points._

It was unbelievable. Mind boggling even.

She looked at the punkish man, nodding with a smile at her. "It's truly amazing, aren't they?" he retorted in a light melancholy. "The monsters amongst us?"

Yihwa looked back at the masked boy, descending the stairs as calmly as he climbed them. How could somebody that looked so fragile be able to make a stunt like that.

Three red circles over three white eyes fluttered on his robe and on her eyes. Three red circles over three eyes that promised rebellion, destruction, death. Three red circles over three eyes that promised riches, glory and power to its followers. Three red circles over three white eyes she was too familiar with.

_It can't be...FUG?_

* * *

End of Chapter 2


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